Something Gone Wrong
by independentwriter-137
Summary: "I think he's an anti-hero, that's all. Not necessarily a villain." In which Chat Noir is desperate to get Ladybug's miraculous and Ladybug just wants to save him. Enemy AU. Reverse Crush AU.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N. So this is my first time in the Miraculous fandom and I couldn't decide if I wanted to do a holiday fic or an Enemy AU so I thought I'd just put them together. I also thought it would be fun to change up the dynamic between these two cuties because after all, isn't that what fanfiction is for? Anyway, without further ado, my first MLB fanfic..._

* * *

-Something Gone Wrong-

* * *

It wasn't supposed to be this way.

Marinette snatches her yo-yo away just seconds before Chat Noir's Cataclysm presses into the spot where her most valuable weapon used to be. The concrete disintegrates into black dust, decaying and in startling contrast to the white of the snow surrounding it. Faintly, she can hear the akuma's laugh in the distance and the screams of terror echoing in the street. It twists her mouth into a grimace.

Chat's green eyes are furious today. Even during their worst fights, there would still be a strange kind of humor in them.

"No puns today, Chat Noir?" she asks as she ducks the swing of his baton.

"Afraid not, M'lady," he says.

An odd disappointment settles in her stomach. He would usually crack a pun or two that would give Ladybug more incentive to punch the smirk off his face. As violent as they seemed, his attempts to steal her miraculous could almost be described as playful.

Not today. Something was particularly different about her enemy today.

She flips onto the next rooftop to escape him because purifying the akuma is her number one priority. Her movements are slower today. Marinette curses the cold weather affecting her. Tikki warned her that Ladybugs were more sluggish during the winter. They couldn't help it. It was one of the less desirable traits they inherited from their namesake.

It wouldn't be a problem, she thinks, if she had a partner to back her up instead of an enemy trying to steal her powers. She chances a glance at Chat Noir who isn't too far behind her. She thought the Christmas season would soften him enough to have a civil and serious conversation. She couldn't have been more wrong.

The akuma is in sight now. An environmentalist who wasn't being taken seriously now spreads plants across the city. Thick vines wrapped themselves around buildings while foliage creeped its way into the streets. The akuma must sense her because he turns in her direction. His chlorophyll-eyes flash and he extends an arm at her.

"Ladybugs must be one with nature, then I will take your miraculous!"

Vines shout out from his fingertips and Ladybug almost smiles at the turn of events. She uses her yo-yo to launch herself over the vines easily a second before they could wrap around her. Chat's surprised grunt makes her chuckle. Poor kitty. Too focused on catching her that he missed the vines hurling towards him.

The black cat is hopelessly entangled in the vines and his sharp claws slicing at the plants seem to trap him even more. From her perch, Ladybug smiles at him, knowing he only has minutes before he detransforms. "Good luck getting out of that one, kitty cat. Merry Christmas!"

His growl of frustration just makes her smile wider.

She turns her full attention back to the overgrown weed terrorizing Paris and twirls her yo-yo in her hand. "Now, now," she says, "let's go down nice and easy."

* * *

A rush of ladybugs is the only thing that frees Chat and he only has seconds to spare before he hides behind a dumpster and detransforms. He doesn't leave right away. He just buries his face in his hands in frustration and tries not to cry.

He can almost hear his father's anger when he comes home without Ladybug's miraculous. It will be worse than usual—not that Adrien can blame him. This will be the first Christmas that he's going to spend without his mother. It makes him want to crawl in a ball and hide. He would do anything to get Ladybug's miraculous so he could bring her back, but now especially. He was hoping he could bring his mom back just in time to exchange presents on Christmas morning.

With only less than a month before Christmas day, that situation became less and less likely.

This is all Ladybug's fault. If she would just hand over her miraculous, this wouldn't be a problem. A pit of anger brews in his stomach. Normally, Adrien could honestly say he _liked_ Ladybug. She was strong and brave and compassionate. She was everything Adrien ever aspired to be and if circumstances hadn't happened the way they did, he would've been honored to be her partner instead of her enemy.

But that's not how things turned out. Right now, she was a reminder of failure. It's been a full year since his mother passed and eight months after he donned the Chat Noir costume, but he was nowhere near retrieving her miraculous. Ladybug was an obstacle. And that needed to be taken care of.

Plagg lets out some sort of mewl of discontentment and gives Adrien a pointed look. The cat kwami never says much to Adrien, much too angry about the miraculous being misused to do anything except to request for food.

The kwami's condescending look partnered with his already sour disposition only heightens Adrien's annoyance. "Still won't say anything to me? Not even now, Plagg?" he says, bitterly. "I don't understand what you don't understand. What's so bad about wanting to bring her back?"

His kwami says nothing. He just gives Adrien a look that can only be described as ancient. It lasts for a moment before Plagg's face reverts back to its usual scowl. He grabs the zipper of Adrien's backpack and zooms insider without another glance.

Adrien lets his hands go completely numb before he finally psyches himself up enough to begin the long walk home.

* * *

"Oh my God, _please_ don't tell me you have a crush on Chat Noir," Alya says behind Marinette.

Marinette's cheek flush and she turns to gape at Alya who has her eyes trained on the sketch Marinette was absentmindedly working on while waiting for the teacher to arrive. "What? _No!_ That would be insane. Totally insane," she says.

Her own eyes glance at the drawing she's created and she almost winces. It's incredibly detailed with Chat Noir's unruly hair and his signature smirk on his lips. His sharp cat teeth poke out ever so slightly over his bottom lip and the look in his eyes is both arrogant and concerned. It looks so life-like that she can practically imagine that day in the rain again when she first met him as a civilian.

She snaps the sketchbook shut and does her best to glare at her best friend. "I _do not_ like Chat Noir."

Alya raises a skeptical eyebrow as she settles next to Marinette. When Marinette sees the grin creeping up on Alya's face, she knows she's screwed.

"Come on, Mari. I know he's handsome and all, so I wouldn't blame you for having a slight crush on him, but you having a thing for a villain? Really? You're better than that," she says.

"He's not a villain," Marinette replies before she can stop herself.

Alya's grin widens. _Fuck._

"I mean, he's obviously not a hero," she backtracks. "I just mean, I don't think he's really a villain either, you know? He saves civilians all the time. He doesn't do any harm. Not really. The most he does is fight with Ladybug and try to take her miraculous, which, yeah, is pretty bad, but he just doesn't strike me as evil?"

 _Shut up, shut up, shut up,_ she tells herself, but her mouth doesn't seem to be getting the memo. Her mind keeps drifting to Chat Noir using his baton to bring her to safety during the first akuma attack, his eyes exactly the way she drew them in the picture.

"Are you alright?" he asked after he had dropped her a little roughly. "I'm sorry, kind of new to this whole thing. I'm still getting the hang of it."

"Yeah, I'm fine," she had said. It was drizzling, but she hardly noticed. This black cat almost got himself killed when he rushed to grab her before the akuma's sharp talons could tear at her skin. He didn't even know her, but there he was risking his life for her.

"Well I'm _paw_ stiviely happy to hear that, Princess," he said and flashed that smirk at her. Her cheeks heated up and she dropped his gaze.

"Thanks," she had said and watched him leap back into the fight before looking for a place to transform herself.

She's still rambling, she knows, so she cuts herself off before she can say anything worse. "I think he's an anti-hero. That's all. Not a villain," she finishes awkwardly.

"Okay," Alya says, "I believe you."

"I hate you," she grumbles and sinks into her seat as Alya just laughs at her discomfort.

She's still trying to her burning face under control so she can tell Alya that Chat Noir is also an arrogant, dorky, self-centered jerk who really needs to learn to improve his puns when Mme. Bustier walks into the classroom with a tired looking Adrien Agreste coming in after her.

Nino snorts as Adrien approaches. "For once, you're not late, dude. You had what? 2 seconds to spare?"

"Yeah, my alarm clock didn't go off, so I woke up late," he says. His gaze flicks to Marinette and his cheeks grows a little red. "H-hey, Mari! Morning good! I mean, good morning!"

She smiles kindly, if not a tad distractedly at him. "Morning, Adrien."

Mme. Bustier begins to take attendance and Marinette shakes her head to clear her thoughts of any black cat who she certainly didn't like not matter what Alya thought. She sneaks a peak of her drawing anyway and makes a mental note to burn it later before anyone else got any ideas.

* * *

 _A/N. And that's a wrap for the first chapter of this story! I had a blast trying my hand out with these characters and I'm really hoping I did them justice. Please review to let me know what you think!_

 _-Indy_


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N. I've been wanting to do an Enemy AU for a while after reading a few really great ones, but I didn't want to do one that was just like all the others, you know? So when I finally was able to put my own twist on things, I was really excited about it and I'm so glad you guys like it so far._

* * *

-Something Gone Wrong-

* * *

The first time Hawkmoth appeared in the middle of Adrien's room, he was frightened. The man tall and imposing, but that didn't exactly faze Adrien. After all, he dealt with tall and imposing on a daily basis thanks to his father. Dressed in an outfit that might have been comical under any other circumstances, Hawkmoth had stood there with an unnatural gleam in his eye and a slight smirk resting on his lips.

Adrien thought it was some kind of crazy stalker or something. He was just about to call for the Gorilla when he finally saw his father standing in the corner of his room. With a slight shake of his father's head, the shout died on Adrien's lips. He had no way of knowing that the moment he walked into that room, his life would change forever.

Quite a lot has changed since then and Adrien hardly blinks as he enters his room and sees Hawkmoth's silhouette leaning on a wall. If he was being honest, Adrien didn't really see the point to these visits. Hawkmoth knew he didn't have Ladybug's miraculous yet.

"Failed again, Chat Noir," Hawkmoth says, his mouth twisting in a sneer.

Merely shrugging in response, Adrien drops his backpack and pulls out a piece of Camembert for Plagg to snack on.

"Do I need to remind you what's at stake?" Hawkmoth asks.

"No," Adrien says and plops himself face down on the bed. As if ignoring Hawkmoth would make him go away. He knows he's angering Hawkmoth, which probably isn't the wisest decision, but he's also tired and depressed. He really doesn't need Hawkmoth's lectures right now.

"You don't seem to be taking this very seriously, Agreste. Need I remind you that I gave you that miraculous and I can take it away any time I please?" Hawkmoth says.

Lies, Adrien thinks, empty threats. There is no one else Hawkmoth could ever find to be Chat Noir who would have the same drive and motivation as him. Adrien sits up anyway and sighs. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm trying," he says and lets some of his bitterness seep into his tone as he recalls the day's earlier events. Ladybug had defeated him again. This time against some sort of candy themed akuma that Adrien thought was pretty lame as far as villains went. If he was in a better mood, he would say it was a sticky situation. "She's Ladybug for a reason. She's smart, she's resourceful, she's lucky," he says.

Hawkmoth is silent for a moment as he regards Adrien. Adrien finds that he can't hold the man's gaze and settles on letting his exhaustion show on his features.

"Adrien, I—" his father walks in and instantly snaps his mouth shut at the sight of Hawkmoth. His father is a proud man. Intimidating to most, even his own son. He only ever seemed to shrink when he was in the presence of Hawkmoth. It was disconcerting to say the least. "Hawkmoth," his father says with a slight nod of the head.

"Mr. Agreste," Hawkmoth says in return, "tell your son to watch his attitude around me or else he'll lose more than his ring."

A swirl of white butterflies wraps around the villain, leaving no trace of the intrusion in the first place.

* * *

Marinette clutches her phone to her ear as she shifts uncomfortably on to her bed, finding no sweet spot for her bruised ribs. "Yeah, Alya, I'm fine. I'll be back in school tomorrow."

"Girl, I know you're clumsy, but falling down the stairs again? Are you sure everything's okay?"

"I live in a bakery, remind me to never carry to trays of macaroons again so I don't lose my footing next time," Marinette lies easily. It's a lot better than telling the truth: an oversized lollipop from an akumatized toddler sent her crashing into a brick wall.

Alya sighs. "Okay, okay. See you tomorrow, Mari!"

"See you," Marinette says and hangs up the phone. She muffles a groan into the pillow as the slight shift of position sends a sharp stab of pain through her ribs.

Tikki zooms in near face with a sympathetic frown. "Sorry, Marinette. The Miraculous Ladybug should've fixed everything, including your injuries—"

"If it was at full potential, I know," Marinette finishes for her. "Chalk it up to an occupational hazard, I guess. Can't be helped when your supposed partner seems more bent on killing you with each passing day."

And there it was again. That stupid black cat back on her mind.

Recognizing the look, Tikki sighs. "You're thinking about him again."

"I just don't understand," Marinette admits.

"I know. Your situation isn't ideal. It's natural for you to feel drawn to him. As the wielder of the black cat miraculous, he is the other half of your miraculous," Tikki says gently. "Except you weren't chosen at the same time by the guardian. Remember, Marinette, you became Ladybug because the black cat miraculous suddenly became active along with Hawkmoth's."

"He wasn't meant to be Chat Noir," Marinette says sadly.

For some reason, it makes Tikki smile. "I didn't say that. Fate is funny that way. It can work in roundabout ways. He might be the one destined to be Chat Noir. He also might not be. I've seen multiple outcomes over the years, a thousand scenarios. We'll just have to wait and see how this one will turn out. Right now, Marinette, your only job is stop them and protect your miraculous and your city."

"My job is to save people, Tikki," Marinette whispers sadly. "That includes Chat Noir. I've seen it with my own eyes. I know the kindness he's capable of. He saved me and he didn't even know my name. He's not cruel. He's not power-hungry. He's just…" She trails off, looking for the right word. She thinks of his eyes every time she defeats an akuma or when his miraculous sounds its warning beeps and he drags himself away from her without her miraculous. "Sad," she settles on, "and in pain."

"Oh, Marinette," Tikki says and nuzzles her cheek. "I don't know if you can."

* * *

 _And there you have it! I know most of you were thinking Hawkmoth was Adrien's father, but nope! Their relationship is different in this fic and if you stick with me long enough to find out who it is, I'm sure you'll enjoy some of the surprises I have up my sleeve. Personally, I just can't believe that Hawkmoth is Adrien's father because I feel like it would be too easy (but then again it is a kid's show)._

 _I also apologize for the lack of Adrien/Marinette, Ladybug/Chat Noir interaction in this chapter, but you can expect some in the next one._

 _Leave a comment to let me know what you think!_

 _-Indy_


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N. This chapter actually turned better than I initially thought it would. Also, yay for plot advancement!_

* * *

-Something Gone Wrong-

* * *

She should have seen it coming, really. Marinette has never been the most graceful of girls when she's out of the costume, but she still misses the step on the way to her seat and she finds herself sprawled on the classroom floor for the second time this week.

Clumsy, clumsy, clumsy, she silently berates herself as she presses a hand to her throbbing forehead.

"You okay, Mari?" Adrien asks and offers her a hand up.

She takes it gratefully and smiles weakly in return. "Yeah, I'm used to it by now. I'm such a klutz."

"Don't worry about it! It's cute," he says with a wink that gives her a vague sense of déjà vu. She brushes it off quickly.

"Thanks, I guess. It—"

"Adrikins!" Chloe's nasally tone pierces the air. Marinette watches Adrien wince and pats him on the shoulder consolingly as Chloe bounds into the classroom with Sabrina trailing her like a puppy. "What are you doing over there? Marinette's not tripping herself to get your attention again, is she? That girl will do anything to get the attention on her."

You are Ladybug, she reminds herself, keep your cool. "That girl is right here, Chloe. And no, I don't trip myself for anyone's attention. If that's all I was after, there are less painful ways to do that like dressing up in that blindingly yellow ensemble you've got going," she says. She knows she should tone it down and keep a level head, but something about Chloe just rubs her the wrong way.

She catches Adrien trying to smother a laugh behind his hand. He's almost successful too, but a quiet chuckle manages to breakthrough. Chloe looks absolutely affronted.

"Wait until my father hears about this," Chloe threatens.

"You know where to find me," Marinette answers and finally takes her seat, ignoring the looks that Chloe is sending her.

"You should probably get to your seat too, Chloe. Class is going to start soon," Adrien says, polite as ever.

It seems to snap Chloe out of it and she flashes him a saccharine smile. "Of course, Adrikins," she says and blows him a kiss before leaving.

Adrien turns back to Marinette with a shy smile on his face. Not for the first time, Marinette notices how attractive he is. Bright green eyes and high cheekbones with a smile that could make any girl swoon framed in honey blonde hair—it's no wonder he's a model. She thinks that she might have a crush on him in another life. One where she wasn't so distracted with akumas and Chat Noir. She wonders what that life would be like.

She also realizes she just completely missed what Adrien just said.

"Um, sorry, I spaced out for a bit. What did you say?"

Light pink dusts his cheeks and he scratches the back of his head sheepishly. "I said that I think it's cool how you can stand up to Chloe like that."

She shrugs. "It wasn't always like that."

"What changed?"

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good people do nothing. At least that's what Alya told me," she grins.

For some reason, it makes Adrien's brow furrow just a bit, but it's gone as quickly as it appears. "Yeah, you're right."

She's about to ask if something's bothering him when Alya enters excitedly with a new Ladybug video for the Ladyblog and she it slips her mind.

* * *

For the most part, Chat Noir finds the akumas Hawkmoth sends amusing. He doesn't like the damage they cause or the people they endanger, but he generally finds the costumes and powers interesting. It never ceases to amaze him what kind of powers come from everyday problems.

However, for this akuma, not so much.

It's been a few days since the last akuma attack and he suspects that Hawkmoth's getting desperate for a victim and that's why Chat Noir is currently staring down the Condiment King.

"There seems to be a lack of ketchup in this city, allow me to provide some," the villain says with more conviction than the situation seems to require.

"Ladybug! Show yourself! I have been deprived of my favorite hotdog condiments and now you will give me your miraculous!"

Chat feels soft footsteps land on the same roof as him and he turns to see a confused Ladybug. He steps out of the shadow he was hiding in and holds up his baton.

She doesn't seem to pay him much attention because her gaze is focused at the villain in a red, yellow, and white striped costume. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Mayo enjoy this one, M'Lady. It might be your last. Your miraculous is mine." He grins as her gaze snaps back to him.

There it is. That fire, that determination and fearlessness. It might've made his heart stutter the first time he saw it, but he knew it was stupid to let that continue if he was going to fight this girl. Instead, it lit up the same kind of determination in him.

Her lip curled up in a smile. "Let's see if you can ketchup to me this time, minou."

* * *

He doesn't. It's embarrassing because he skids on the slippery, mayonnaise coated road and crashes into a streetlight. He's pretty sure he's got a black eye and he can hear Ladybug's laughter from above as she swings towards the akuma with her yo-yo effortlessly.

Once he hears Ladybug's call for her Lucky Charm, he knows the fight is as good as over.

It could be worse, he concedes as he takes a look at his uniform which it coated in white. He's more of Chat Blanc right now than a Chat Noir. He also needs to get some ice on his eye or else he's never going to hear the end of it from his father.

A rush of ladybugs wipe the streets clean and he watches in begrudging admiration. After a few moments, he decides it's time to head home and he uses his baton to leap from one building to another. His eye is swelling shut and it throws him off a bit.

The baton lands at an awkward angle and instead of launching himself onto the next roof, he loses his balance and finds himself rapidly approaching a vaguely familiar balcony.

One of the plants meets it untimely demise as he crashes into it and the pot clatters to the floor. He feels a shard dig into his side and cut through his suit. Damnit.

He hears the sound of footsteps and he curses and he lifts himself up. The trap door opens and he finds himself staring into a familiar set of blue eyes. Her lips are parted in surprise and his face flushes as he wonders how much like a mangy cat he looks right now.

"Chat Noir?"

* * *

 _A/N. Third chapter done! It took several rewrites before I was satisfied with this chapter because I had Marinette and Adrien interacting in a lot of different ways. I considered Adrien stuttering and stammering around Marinette, but I just didn't think it worked. He would be shy, yes, but not to the same extent as Marinette. I imagined he would stammer from time to time, but I don't think he would ramble like Marinette does. I also imagine that his Chat tendencies to flirt would poke through a bit, but in a more subdued way._

 _As for Marinette, well I figured she would act the same way she acts around everyone else. Will she stutter around Chat Noir? We'll see next chapter. I, myself, haven't really decided yet. If you guys have a suggestion, feel free to let me know._

 _Also, I'm totally up for akuma suggestions! As much as possible, I don't want to use the ones from the show because it would be like rewriting the episode only with them as rivals. It would be interesting, sure, but I've seen a fic like that and I wouldn't want to accidentally copy it in any way._

 _Leave a review to let me know what you think!_

 _-Indy_


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N. Marichat! Personally, this is my favorite pairing from the love square._

* * *

-Something Gone Wrong-

* * *

As he takes in Marinette's disheveled appearance, for a second, he forgets that he was Chat Noir.

Marinette's expression is a strange mix of confusion, fascination, and fear. He'd never seen that look on her face before. One of her pigtails is undone and her night shirt had slipped off her right shoulder, exposing pale and freckled skin that makes him flush. He feels more like Adrien then—socially awkward and shy.

When he finally shakes himself out of his daze, he tries to stand up, but his hands slip on his own blood and he's on the floor again. The tiles are cool beneath his flushed forehead and he wonders if he's ever blushed so much in his life. There's dirt in his hair now from the plant, he realizes with a grimace. He must look like a complete and utter idiot. So much for Chat Noir, the threat to Paris. Now he was Chat Noir, beaten up and foiled by a potted plant.

 _Is it possible to die from embarrassment?_

His spill seems to snap Marinette out of it because he hears the trap door slam shut. At least she won't see him humiliate himself further.

He manages to push himself into a sitting position and surveys his surroundings. His house is a little far from here, but nothing he couldn't easily handle if his swollen eye hadn't totally thrown off his depth perception. As a miraculous holder, he would heal faster than the average person, so the swelling would probably go down in a couple of hours. He just had to wait it out. Preferably not on Marinette's balcony.

The trap door opens again and a much more put together Marinette comes out with what looks like a first aid kit. He doesn't know what to think as she hands him an ice pack, so he wordlessly presses it to his eye.

"So how do you unzip this magic suit?" she asks.

 _"What?"_

She blinks at him like she doesn't understand his confusion. "You murdered one of my plants and managed to cut yourself because of it. I highly recommend cleaning it out first since soil isn't exactly the best thing for wounds."

"Oh," he says, feeling dumb. Why isn't she running away from him? Why isn't she calling the police? Why is she treating his wounds and looking at him with a concerned, albeit wary, look?

"Well?" she prompts, the slightest hint of amusement in her voice.

"Oh, right, sorry," he says. He tugs on the bell and exposes his side where the cut is. A faint blush dusts Marinette's cheeks at the exposed skin and he feels his heart swell at how cute she is. It also gives him a bit of Chat Noir confidence back. "Why are you helping me?" he dares to ask.

"Because you need it," she replies, avoiding his eyes as she dabs some alcohol on cotton.

The answer is so simple and kind that it brings a slow smile to his face. He falls a little bit deeper for the girl. He remembers his first encounter with her as Adrien when she thought he stuck gum on her seat and then his apology to her, when he offered her his umbrella in the rain.

He's still not quite sure what it was. Maybe it was look in her eyes, like she didn't believe someone was offering the same kind of kindness he would later find out she gave so freely. Maybe it was when she accidentally closed the umbrella on herself and he found that bit of clumsiness particularly endearing. He spent his whole life around models. They were all trying so hard to be perfect. Their lack of flaws made them seem unrealistic and superficial. He should know after all. Every time he played the role of Adrien the perfect son, he felt stiff like a doll. But here was this girl, adorable and clumsy and _genuine._ It was refreshing,

Not that he was in love from that moment or anything, but he was definitely intrigued. It was gradual from there. The more he learned about her, the deeper he fell.

Now that she was offering to clean up his wound for him even though he was _Chat Noir,_ well he couldn't help it if he internally swooned a little.

"You do know I'm Chat Noir, right? Feared villain? Ap _paw_ lling human being according to most news establishments?" he can't help but tease.

"Yes, of course I'm aware. How many other leather clad, cat-themed people would be crashing onto my balcony after an akuma attack?" she says. "This is gonna hurt."

The sting of the alcohol is nothing new to him. He's cleaned out his own wounds before, albeit less gently than Marinette's nimble fingers were doing right now.

"Doesn't look deep enough to need stitches," she decides and pulls out gauze and gauze tape from the kit. "And for the record, I'm just paying you back for saving my life."

He snorts. "I wasn't going to let you get crushed under debris from Stone Heart's attack. There wasn't even a Ladybug yet to save anyone, so I did."

The very first akuma attack. He had just received his miraculous from Hawkmoth a week before and he barely had time to practice his new skills. Marinette had been at the wrong place at the wrong time and he hadn't thought twice about using his new found powers to get her out of the way.

It had been close, too. He felt the debris brush his tail as he leaped away. If he had been a second later…well, it probably would've been the shortest run of any Chat Noir. He left her far away from the scene with a wink before leaping away.

"I know, but you didn't have to," she says. A sad smile graces her features as she finishes up with the gauze. "I thought you were a superhero."

He drops her gaze, a different kind of pain washing over him. "Sorry to disappoint, princess." She shrugs and averts her eyes as he zips his suit back up. "Thanks for patching me up."

"No problem," she says and picks a loose thread on her shirt. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course, after all, it would've been a _cat_ astrophe if you hadn't helped me out," he says, falling back on his puns to help ease the tension.

"Why…why are you villain? Why do you fight against Ladybug?" she asks, voice quiet.

Chat's smile drops at her question and his stomach turns uneasily. "I—I have goals I need to accomplish. I need Ladybug's miraculous. It's nothing personal, really."

"What goal is so important that you have to turn innocent people into supervillains?" she presses, her voice gaining strength.

"A life-changing one," he spits out, blinking back the sudden tears he feels gathering. "Something that will make all the suffering worth it."

"For who?" she challenges. Her tone is like the one she uses when she fights for something she believes in in class. He shouldn't be surprised. It was one of the things he liked about her, after all. "For you? And how much suffering have you caused?"

None of this is new to him. They were thoughts that kept him up at night when Plagg fixed his green eyes on him. He doesn't need them voiced back to him.

He throws the ice bag down on the floor, but Marinette's piercing gaze doesn't falter. "Thanks for the help, Princess, but I don't need an interrogation."

Marinette's gaze softens and he stands up. His depth perception is good enough. He needs to get away from the questions, the guilt, and the pain.

He's prepared to vault away when Marinette's soft voice reaches his ears.

 _"You could be so much more."_

Tears threaten to leak from his eyes and he launches himself off the balcony without another word.

* * *

 _A/N. Who ordered extra angst? This chapter was a lot heavier than I expected it to be. To be honest, I thought there would be some light fluff and a whole lot more puns and in the earliest drafts of it, that's exactly how it was, but it felt wrong. This is only their second meeting as Chat Noir and Marinette-the first with Chat Noir as a "villain." So instead of fluff, we ended up with this angsty little chapter that I am quite happy with._

 _Anyway, I really liked some of your akuma suggestions! Keep sending them in because there can never be a shortage of akumas in a multi-chap fic._

 _Leave a review to let me know what you think!_

 _-Indy_


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N. Yay for chapter updates! School has started up again, so as I mentioned in my other Miraculous fanfic, The Type, updates will be slower. Not to worry! Updates will come slowly (maybe? We'll see), but surely._

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-Something Gone Wrong-

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Adrien's pretty sure that he's never seen his father's usually calm face so livid before. He likes to think that his father is concerned about his son's wellbeing, but seeing as how Adrien wasn't seriously injured during the akuma attack, he's pretty sure his father is more concerned about the black eye he's sporting.

One look at Adrien sent the vein in his father's forehead popping out before the man barked orders at Natalie about totally rearranging Adrien's schedule for the week.

"Reckless! Careless! Do you even _think_ about the consequences of what you just did?"

 _Thanks, dad, I'm fine,_ he thinks bitterly. "I was more focused on trying to get Ladybug's miraculous."

" _Which you didn't do!_ Now you've put your identity at risk, not to mention the amount of commitments we're going to have to break so that no one knows about this. Stupid! It's like you're not even trying," his father fumes.

Adrien tries to be mad; he really does. He wants to say that he _is_ trying. He's trying so hard that he's—as Marinette puts it—causing innocent people to suffer. He wants to say that getting injured is an occupational hazard when you're Paris' worst villain right now, second only to Hawkmoth. But he doesn't say anything. He doesn't even feel that familiar spark of frustration. A part of him _is_ angry, but he mostly feels himself shrink at his father's words. _Disappointment_ , he supposes _, is going to be a recurring theme today._ Marinette's eyes flash in his mind before he shakes the image from his head.

"I'm sorry, Father," he says quietly and glances around the room.

It would be his luck if Hawkmoth showed up to chew him out today too, but it appears the purple clad villain decided Adrien wasn't worth it this time.

His father's words go right over his head because honestly, there's nothing his father can say that will make him feel any worse than he already does.

"…and you're not to go to school either."

"What?" Adrien's head snaps up, panic crawling up his throat. "But, Father—"

"I told you _no one_ can know. Least of all your classmates. You can miss a week of school. Natalie will make sure you're up to date in your lessons. That is final," his father says, his voice taking on that signature cool tone.

There's a different kind of pain thrumming through him again. It's a familiar pain. The kind that never really went away. "Of course, Father," he whispers.

"Good, now get some ice on that eye."

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"Adrien's getting really behind on his homework," Nino laments as he slumps in his seat. "I wonder how what's up with him. He hasn't been answering any of my texts."

"He's probably sick or busy. You know what that boy's schedule is like. I wouldn't blame him if he just decided to take the week off," Alya says.

Nino shakes his head vigorously. "Adrien _loves_ school. It's insane, I know, but he wouldn't miss it unless he has to. I guess he likes it better than being cooped up in that gigantic house all day. What do you think, Marinette?"

Marinette says nothing, simply picking at her food absent-mindedly. Nino and Alya share the same look they always do whenever their favorite fashion designer zones out. "Hey," Alya nudges her ribs, "earth to Mari."

Images of the look on Chat Noir's face just before he jumped off her balcony dissipate before Marinette's eyes. She blinks at her friends and smiles sheepishly. Ever since that night, she's been zoning out more often. She spends more time replaying that night in her head more times than she'd like to admit. She keeps thinking of what she could've done differently, of what she should have said. Marinette wishes she could go back in time and slap a hand over her own mouth before she started spouting questions that Chat obviously wasn't ready to answer.

Patience. She should've been more patient. Chat seemed to like her well enough in her civilian form. She could've used that to get closer to him, to get some valuable information and then…and then what? Save him from himself?

Pursing her lips, she tries not to think too hard about that part. Whatever the reason Chat was doing this, it has to be stopped. Her first job is to save Paris. Stupid cats and their stupid puns were another matter entirely.

Not that it matters. She's pretty sure she's screwed that up magnificently.

She also realizes Nino and Alya are still staring at her and she blushes because she must have zoned out. Again.

 _Focus._

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" she asks.

Alya rolls her eyes fondly. "Adrien. He's been absent for a while. He's gonna have his work cut out for him when he gets back."

Marinette frowns at the mention of the blonde model. She considers Adrien a close friend and she'd be lying if she said she wasn't worried about him. Feeling slightly guilty about letting that stupid cat occupy most of her thoughts instead of thinking about the absence of her friend, she offers to take his homework to his house.

"Nah, I'll do it. I'm his best bro after all," Nino says.

"His father literally forbid you from stepping foot in their home," Marinette deadpans. "Besides, I'm the class rep. It's my job anyway. I'll head over there after class."

"I guess you're right. Tell him I said hey," Nino sulks.

Marinette lays a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Will do," and offers a friendly smile.

" _And_ ," Alya adds, "I'm sure Adrien will appreciate it more if Marinette's the one who hands him his homework."

Nino brightens considerably. " _Definitely,"_ he says and shares a look with Alya that Marinette doesn't understand.

She brushes it off because her friends are smiling and awesome and _uncomplicated._ It's refreshing.

The bell goes off, signaling the end of their lunch break.

"C'mon," Alya says, extending her hand to Marinette. "We've got chemistry next and I can't have you spacing out on me again if we don't want another lab mishap."

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 _A/N. Plot advancement! Anyway, thank you guys for all of the awesome reviews so far. I'm really glad that you guys like the story and as long as you're willing to read more, I'm up to write more. Also, thanks a bunch for the akuma suggestions! Some of them will definitely show up in the next chapters._

 _Reviews are loved :3_

 _-Indy_


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